Birdie Hall

birdiehall

Playing as Player

How to play

Move with WASD. Hold a stroke key to load the racket, release it as the shuttle drops into reach. The Contact Point meter tells you if you were late or early.
Clear sends it to the back line, Smash drives it down hard, Drop floats it just over the net, Lift buys you time, Net tumbles it over the tape.
Overhead strokes need the shuttle above your shoulder (about 1.75 m). Below that, a smash turns into a flat drive and a clear into a lift.
Press Space to jump. It lifts your reach by almost a metre, so you can cut off high clears early, and a smash struck in the air comes down faster and steeper.
Press C to dive. You throw yourself the way you are moving (or at the shuttle) and scoop back anything low that lands within reach, but you need a moment to get up.
Sprinting, jumping and diving use stamina, shown above your head. A dive costs a big chunk and you can't dive again straight away. Run it dry and you are tired: no sprint, jump or dive until the bar refills to 40%. It only refills slowly, faster when you stand still.
Hits can go out. Aiming at a line is risky with poor timing. A swing that's early pulls the shot to your left and one that's late pushes it right; the Contact Point meter shows which. Full charge on a deep clear can sail long, and a mistimed drop, net shot or drive can clip the net.
Online 2v2 (Play a friend): pick 2v2 · 4 people and share the code with three friends (the first to join is your partner; it starts when all four are in), or 2v2 · you + friend vs cpus and play alongside one friend against two CPUs. Doubles rules come from match settings.
CPU vs CPU (w on the home menu): pick any CPUs for each side, singles or doubles, and watch. 1 / 2 / 4 change the speed, S skips to the result, V switches camera (broadcast, side, follow the shuttle, top-down).
Doubles (match settings, g): you and a CPU partner against two CPUs. You cover your half; your partner takes shots on theirs. With real rules the outer side lines count, the serve box is wider and shorter, and servers rotate: win a point on your serve and you switch courts with your partner and serve again. Simple doubles keeps the singles court and serves.
Timing shapes every shot. Perfect contact gives the fastest smashes, kills and drives. A little off is fine. Clearly late and the racket comes through low: smashes, drops and net shots go into the net. Clearly early and the shot floats up, slower and easy to attack.
After you hit, you need a beat before you can hit again (a little longer after a smash or net kill), and so does the CPU. A shuttle coming at you very fast can only be blocked back with a net shot or lift, so a good kill usually wins the point.
Aim with IJKL while you load the shot: J/L towards the lines, I deeper, K shorter. Tap for a slight angle, hold to go all the way. On a phone, the joystick direction aims.
Serve from the right court on an even score and the left on odd, diagonally into the long, narrow singles box. Contact stays below 1.15 m. ; for a high serve, . for a short one.
Shuttle on your non-racket side? You hit a backhand automatically. It works, but it's a little weaker and less accurate than a forehand.
Up close and the shuttle is above the tape? [ or ' turns into a net kill: short, steep and fast.
Serving: ; high, . short, ' flick, which looks short and then goes fast and flat to the back.
On a phone: put your left thumb anywhere on the left side to move (push to the edge to sprint). Hold a shot button to charge and let go to swing. While you serve, the buttons switch to high / short / flick. Tap the banner to skip a break.
Every rally wins a point. Pick the format in Match settings: single game or best of 3/5, 11/15/21 points, win by 2, point cap, breaks and who serves first. The rally winner serves next, and the game winner serves first in the next game.

singles · 13.40 m × 5.18 m · net 1.524 m at centre